Tom Cussen established Clareen Banjos in 1976 and made the first Clareen banjo in 1979. Cussen was the tenor banjo player in Irish trad group Shaskeen in the 1970s and 1980s. Tom was joined in the business by his son Fintan who became head of production in 2018.

Source: Clareen Banjos website (4 April 2019)